Bag-holder



W. G. PRICE.

BAG HOLDER.

APPHCATION FILED APR.2, 1917.

1,3 3, 12, I Patented Dec. 21,1920.

' FIG. 1

UNITED STATES WILLIAM G. PRICE, OF NORTH YAKIMA, WASHINGTON.

BAG-HOLDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 21, 1920.

Application filed April 2, 1917. Serial No. 159,190.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WVILLIAM G. Peron, a citizen of the United States,and resident of North Yakima, in the county of Yakima and State ofWashington, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Bag-Holders;and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof.

My invention relates to a bag-holder and more especially a device ofthis character which is adapted for holding bags in position to befilled with apples, potatoes or other commodities, delivered theretofrom a sorting machine.

The object of my invention is to provide a device of this character inwhich the bag is held securely and evenly at all points so that nogreater strain will be brought upon the bag at one point than anotherand thus preventing the tearing or sagging of the bag.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure l is a plan view; Fig. 2 is alongitudinal sectional view on the line 2-2, Fig. l; and Fig. 3 is anend view.

In the drawing the numeral 2 designates a suitable frame or supportwhich is carried by the legs 3. This frame 2 is open at one end as at 4.Secured to the frame 2 are the clamp-pieces or gripping lugs 5 and 5formed of steel or other suitable metal and with the beveled faces 6.

A clamping or gripping bail 7 is hinged to the frame in any suitablemanner. In the form illustrated, lag-screws 8 pass openings 9 in theends of the bail, and springs 10 are interposed between the heads 11 ofthe lag-screws and the ends of the bail. The resil1ent action of thesprings 10 permits the bail 7 to swing and slide down on the beveledsurfaces of the gripping lugs 5 until the bail contacts with the beveledsurfaces of the gripping lugs 5 so that all of the gripping lugs 5 and 5are thus put into gripping action when the bail is lowered into thisposition as will more fully hereinafter appear. Furthermore by the useof the springs 10 the bail is held by friction in any position of itsarc of swing.

Instead of employing the springs 10 to give the required resiliency, itis apparent that the bail may itself be made of springsteel to give thenecessary resiliency for clamping the bag securely against the fourbeveled surfaces of the gripping lugs 5 and 5. It is therefore essentialto have the bail resilient in order to pinch or grip the bag at the fourgripping points and b ri in the bag at these four points the i ur to beclamped at its four corners and liability of its being pulled out ofplace at any one point is obviated.

in practice the bail 7 is raised as shown in Fig. 2 and the empty bag isinserted and held by the operator against the gripping lugs 5. The bailis then lowered part way down and grips the bag at two points betweenthe bail and the faces 6 of the gripping lugs 5. The operator thenadjusts the front end of the bag with reference to the gripping lugs 5and then further lowers the bail and presses it down so that the bag ispinched or gripped between the bail and the beveled surfaces of thegripping lugs 5. The weight of the bag and contents as the bag is filledpulls the bail downward by friction and causes it to grip the bag moresecurely between said bail and the bevel surfaces of the gripping lugs 5and 5. To release the bag the bail is lifted by grasping its front crossbar and raising it to the position shown in Fig. 2.

By my improved bag-holder the bag can be readily and quickly adjustedinto position and the bail also, so as to secure the bag securely inposition at four points. The bag is held between the rounded smooth faceof the bail and the bevel faces and consequently there is nothing totear or mutilate the bags as is the case where hooks or other devicesare employed. The flexibility of the bail permits it to give in casethere should be a thick portion or seam at the gripping point. In thisway, I provide for clamping with equal effect at all points a bag whichmay vary in thickness.

Prior bag-holding devices of the bail type, having circular or annulargripping bails, have had the disadvantage that the bag is not heldsecurely, because that part of the bag which is thickened by the seam orby a fold will hold tightly, but other parts of the circumference of thebag will be pulled out of the clamping device by the weight of thematerial in the bag. The circumference of the bag is always larger thanthe band over which the bail is intended to fit, so that there is a foldof at least three thicknesses of bag cloth at some place between thebail and the hand. These extra thicknesses hold the bail and the bandapart and pull the bail tightly against the band at the opposite pointin its circumference, with the result that the bag is held tightly onlyat two points in its circumference. I have therefore substituted for thecontinuous bail, whichv has heretofore been used, the la -shapedbailshownand described herein, the arms of the bail being adapted toindependently and resiliently engage the isolated gripping lugs, and theresilience of the bail arms be ing especially useful at the inner end ofthe bail, T he outer end of the bail is substantial-ly rigid andtherefore it will be seen that the inner and outer portions of the bailengage the gripping lugs in difierent ways, the inner part of the bailbeing in spring engagement with the gripping lugs and the outer partexerting a substantial wedgin'g action upon the outer gripping lugs.Also, since the ball is loosely supported upon its pivots, it is enabledto move laterally to a small extent inorder to accommodate varyingthicknesses of cloth which may happen to' come between the gripping lugsand the bail.

ll-ly improved bag holder is especially adapted for use in connectionwith fruit or vegetable; sortingmachines, as it is necessary with suchmachines to have the bag automatically filled to the topand' veryessential that its bottom be above the" floor which puts all the weighton the bag-holder.

What I claim i'sz' v 1. In a bag-holder, the combination with a suitableframe of a U-shaped bail having resilient arms, and four isolatedgripping lugs having'beveled upper surfaces adapted tocooperate with thesaid ball, the portion of the said bail adjacent to its open end beingadapted to grip the bag by independent spring compression of each arm ofthe said bail against one of the said beveled lugs and the outer portionof the said bail being adapted to grip the bag by rigid wedging,pressureagainst the outer lugs.

52. In a bag-holder the combination with a suitable frame of fourisolated lugs having beveled gripping surfaces, a ill-shaped swingingflexible bail carried by the said frame and having resilient arms, thesaid bail being adapted to engage'the said grippinglugs, means forloosely supporting the ends of the said bail, springs carried by thesaid supporting means and acting to spread apart the ends of the saidresilient arms, a bar connecting the outer corners of the said bail andacting to resist compression thereof, the said bail being adapted tofirst clamp the bag upon two of the said gripping lugs by compression ofthe said bail and thereafter being adapted, by an additional downwardswing,.to clamp the bag against the two outer beveled lugs by rigidwedging contact. 3. in a bag-holder, the combination with a suitableframe, of four isolated beveled gripping lugs and a flexible bail havingresilient arms adapted to engagethe'sa-id lugs, moans looselysupportingand yieldingly spreading apart the ends of the said arms,theportion of the said bail adjacent to the said supporting meansbein'gadapted to grip the. bag by spring compression of the said arms betweentwo" of the said lugs'and the outer portion. of the said bail beingadapted to grip the bag by rigid pressure against the two outer lugs.

l. In a hagholder, the combination with a suitable frame, of a pluralityof isolated lugs carried by said frame and having beveled grippingsurfaces, a pivotally movable li-shape'd bail adapted to be swung intocooperation with allof the said lugs to grip the bag, and means forfriction'ally holding the said bail from swinging by gravity. I

In a bagholder, the combination with a suitable frame, of four isolatedlugs carried by said frame and havin'gbeveled gripping surfaces and aU-shaped bail pivotally supported near the free end of its arms, theportion of the bail adjacent to its pivot being adapted to grip the bagagainst two of the said lugs by compression of each arm of the said bailindependently against one of the said lugs and the outer portionof thesaid ball being adapted to grip the bag by a pressing or wedgingpressure between and againstthe' outer lugs.

In testimony whereof I, the said WILLIAM G. Pinon, have hereunto set myhand.

WILLIAM G} PRICE. \Vitnesses:

CARRIE GROSENBAUGH, CHAs. H. LOMBARD.

